If justice delayed is justice denied, what of justice that takes place behind closed doors, with written appeals from vulnerable and elderly people left unread? An Evening Standard investigation has revealed the devastating impact of the single justice procedure (SJP), the fast-track court system used for low-level offences such as TV license prosecutions and not paying car tax.
Defendants can write to the court after being charged to explain any extenuating circumstances, such as illness, impoverishment or caring responsibilities. Yet these are often not even looked at by prosecutors who have the power to withdraw a case that is not in the public interest.
As our courts correspondent Tristan Kirk reports, some defendants have been convicted despite having powerful reasons for not paying a bill. This includes the woman with dementia taken to court by the DVLA for failing to pay £1.67 at a time when she was suffering strokes.
These are not isolated incidents, but warning signs that the SJP is frequently leading to injustices or prosecutions that patently do not serve the public interest. That is why the SJP must be urgently investigated to establish whether it is capable of delivering justice worthy of the name.
Do not tolerate hate
How much hate must you have in your heart to vandalise the Jewish festival of Hanukkah? Islington’s menorah, erected to celebrate the holiday, was left lying in pieces on the ground in what the council has labelled a hate crime on Thursday. This was not an isolated incident. Another one in West Hampstead has been attacked as well.
These criminal incidents come amid an unprecedented torrent of antisemitic attacks in Britain. In the 68 days after Hamas’s terrorist attack on Israel, anti-Jewish hate acts in the UK have risen by 534 per cent compared with the year before. These include assaults on British Jews, their property and communities for their mere Jewishness. Anyone responsible for these appalling crimes should be pursued to the full extent of the law.
The Islington menorah was relit last night in a small ceremony. A strong message that London will not bow to the oldest hatred.
City Spy’s new mission
What backroom deal are two City firms hammering out? Why did top execs have a bust-up at a glamorous party last night? Which business is secretly scrambling for cash to fend off the administrators?
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